British woman among the missing as Spanish floods leave nine dead

A 52-year-old British woman is missing in Almeria as devastating floods claim nine lives and displace hundreds in southern Spain.

The floods have swept through southern Spain forcing hundreds of flee their homes. (Photo: AP/Sergio Torres)

The Foreign and Commonwealth Office said it was looking into the reports of the missing British woman, who has not been named, as ‘a matter of urgency’.

Reports put the current death toll at nine, with five killed in the province of Murcia, three in Almeria and one in Malaga.

Local police say that an elderly man and two young children were among the dead.

Around 600 people have been evacuated from their homes in Andalusia, with those not able to get out in time forced to climb onto their roofs to find shelter.

At least two major highways are closed, while Valencia has shut its busy port (Photo: EPA/ Daniel Perez)

Jackie Broad, 58, who lives in Almeria said she had seen cars washed away as flood waters raged.

‘The river at the bottom of our road has burst its banks. There was a lot of water, in some places up to the roofs of shops and houses,’ she told PA.

‘The water has run away now but it’s left about a foot of mud everywhere. A lot of the roads are closed so we’re having trouble getting around.’The state weather agency said up to 245 litres of water per square metre had fallen in the area in the morning alone.

Spain’s airports authority said that a flight was diverted to Seville as it approached Malaga, which is close to the tourist haven of Costa del Sol.At least two major highways were closed and is the southeastern region of Murcia, a highway bridge collapsed in the heavy rains, national television TVE reported.

At least six people are dead following the floods (Photo: AP/Sergio Torres)